Never a dumb question here (sometimes we forget that we were once new at this too : )

Rule of thumb is to capture in the highest possible resolution on the camera, and then digitize in that resolution if possible. If your workstation can at least capture the HDV material, you should then do an intermediate convert in software to SD for edits. However, if you can edit on the PC in HDV or cineform intermediate (for example), then do so and render to SD.

There are several examples, not isolated to any one HDV camera, that prove that HDV material makes for a sharper SD output.

Do a search on HDV to SD.

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Pete Ferling http://ferling.net It's never a mistake if you learn something new from it.
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If they are anything like the XL-H1, you will be able to shoot in HD and down convert directly from the camera. We do this all the time with our H1 and works perfectly. Since I work with a powerbook it's a little rough to work with the HDV file, but you can change the settings on the camera itself to downcovert straight out of the firewire... I bet these will have that same capabilities. Always shoot in HD though... always!!! and yes it will work with the 24F mode but depending on your editing system will depend on if it works properly or not...